Why Is Holden Back On PLL?

This Long-Absent Pretty Little Liars Character Is Back & Hanging With Aria

The last 10 episodes of Pretty Little Liars promise to answer all of our questions about the A game, but that's not the only thing fans can look forward to when the series returns on April 18. PLL is also hosting an unofficial reunion by bringing back long-absent characters. Sure, last season brought the triumphant return of the still-bitter Jenna (Tammin Sursok) and the quickly-decapitated Noel (Brant Daugherty), but it's not just major characters that the show will be reuniting with our beloved Liars. The series is also bringing back players that, frankly, no longer feel particularly relevant. How will they fit into this crazy, crazy series?

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While we don't have that answer just yet, we have officially gotten our first glimpse at the return of Holden (Shane Coffey). Entertainment Weekly has revealed new photos from season 7b, and they show Aria (Lucy Hale) having a chat on a bench with her one-time fake boyfriend.

Photo: Eric McCandless/Freeform

That's not all that's going down: In another photo, we see Ezra (Ian Harding) seemingly meeting Holden for the first time — they shake hands, as Ezra offers a look of totally bewilderment. Maybe he remembered that time Holden acted as a cover for Ezra and Aria's less-than-savory student-teacher relationship? Or, maybe, Holden was just telling him about his underground street fighting hobby — particularly dangerous considering his ambiguous heart condition.

Photo: Eric McCandless/Freeform

The real question here is: why the heck is Holden in town? The easiest answer is that he never left: Aria just iced him out for the past four seasons. Coffey last appeared as Holden in season 3's "The Remains Of An A," which means it'll be five years since Holden was last seen on this series — and just as long since him and Aria had a real conversation on PLL's time table.

So, what's your deal, Holden? Are you the villain known as A.D.? Another red herring? Or just the alter-ego of an actor who took showrunner I. Marlene King up on the offer to make one final PLL appearance? I'm eagerly awaiting the answers...and fortunately, April's not too far away.